Q&A with Fair Trade USA founder Paul Rice

NONPROFIT

Published 4:00 am, Sunday, April 15, 2012

Paul Rice, the founder of the non-profit Fair Trade USA, in Oakland, California on Wednesday, April 11, 2012.

Paul Rice, the founder of the non-profit Fair Trade USA, in Oakland, California on Wednesday, April 11, 2012.

Photo: Jill Schneider, The Chronicle

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Paul Rice, the founder of the non-profit Fair Trade USA, shows off their products, in Oakland, California on Wednesday, April 11, 2012.

Paul Rice, the founder of the non-profit Fair Trade USA, shows off their products, in Oakland, California on Wednesday, April 11, 2012.

Photo: Jill Schneider, The Chronicle

Q&A with Fair Trade USA founder Paul Rice

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Paul Rice spent more than a decade in Nicaragua before returning to the United States to start Fair Trade USA in late 1998.

Then known as TransFair, the Oakland nonprofit began to push businesses to practice fair trade. Today, the group works with more than 800 brands, including Peet's Coffee & Tea, Numi Tea and Ben & Jerry's, which have adopted fair-trade practices and carry its fair-trade label on certain products.

Consumers are increasingly concerned about where their food, cosmetics and other goods come from and want to make their dollars count. Sales of Fair Trade-certified products rose 75 percent in 2011, according to Spins, which tracks the natural products industry. But Rice said his job is far from done.

Q:What is Fair Trade? How does it work?

A: It's a way for you and I as conscious consumers to have a powerful impact on the lives of farmers and their families around the world. Through something as simple as a cup of coffee, a banana or a bar of chocolate, you can reach halfway across the world and help farming families keep their kids in school.

The way it works is farmers organize themselves into marketing cooperatives and sell direct. When they sell direct to Starbucks, Peet's, Ben and Jerry's, or any number of the 800 brands we work with today, they're able to get a much higher price for their harvest. It's like a farmers' market gone global.

Q:How is that different from before?

A: The way international trade works today, small family farmers sell to middlemen, who to sell to other middlemen, who sell to other middlemen. The actual price you pay for your coffee, up here, doesn't really trickle down to the farmers. Under the business-as-usual model, farmers get a few pennies for that $3 latte. Fair trade helps them get more for that harvest.

Q:What does Fair Trade USA do?

A: Fair Trade USA plays three critical roles in the fair-trade movement. The first role - and defining function - is to certify fair-trade products. We certify 90 percent of fair-trade products in the U.S. That label gives consumers the assurance that the product came from a sustainable farm and farmers received a fair price for their products.

We have auditors around the world that audit and inspect farms. We also have a supply-chain audit. It tracks the product from the farm to the grocery store shelves.

We also have two other functions, consumer education and farmer support. With consumer education, our goal is to develop programs that raise awareness among consumers in the U.S.

We (also) run training programs for farmers all over the world, to help them improve the quality of their products, develop strong business skills and to help them get access to capital. Fair trade has to become synonymous with quality, so we help farmers hit that bar.

Q:How is Fair Trade USA funded?

A: In the early days, we were 100 percent funded by grants from major foundations, and we still receive about 25 percent of our budget from charitable contributions. We charge the industry for our audit and certification services. That earned revenue now covers 75 percent of our budget.

Many people refer to us as a social enterprise because even though we're a nonprofit, mission-driven organization, we have created a model for financial sustainability.

Q:Can more be done?

A: When you look at global poverty indicators, you realize we have a long way to go. My goal is to spread fair trade across all product categories, and to deepen our presence in all of the industries we certify.

So can we do more? Yes we can. It's in our hands. You and me and American consumers, we are the most powerful force for good today, and most of us don't even realize it. Every purchase matters. Every purchase is an opportunity to change the world.

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